Millers Mindgames

[londontiger]

I agree with Miller.

Collingwood Football Club do not respect the Richmond Football Club.

I reckon good on him.

The players need some extra motivation. Swooper had them playing out their skins with such.

Its good to see a guy like Miller flush it out in the open again.

p.s. And its good for the Rivalry to cement us a grudge match Round One every year.

Good Footy brain Miller, but try and not make these comments every week.

 

[admin]

Magpies bewildered by Miller jibe
8:52:58 AM Fri 28 March, 2003
afl.com.au

Mick Malthouse said he's bewildered by them. But Collingwood football manager Neil Balme has gone in much harder, describing as an 'absolute joke'; comments by Richmond's Greg Miller that the Magpies have no respect for the Tigers.

On the eve of the opening match of the season at the M.C.G. tonight, Miller sought to close ranks at Punt Road by declaring: "The Collingwood footy club doesn't respect the Richmond footy club at all. They don't respect the players, they don't respect the club at all."

Balme responded on Friday in forthright terms, comparing Miller with the 16th century Florentine intellectual, Niccolo Machiavelli, infamous for his ruthless political doctrines.

"He must think everyone's stupid," Balme told Sport927.


"We've all gone for it. This is fantastic - Greg Miller thinks that Collingwood have no respect for Richmond. Well, what a joke."

Collingwood coach Malthouse was slightly more circumspect.

"All he needs to do is go down to the locker room and see (I played) 120 games and a premiership for them. Of course you've got respect for them,"he said.

"I think if someone had said that who had been at the club for a number of years, I would be very disappointed."

"Quite frankly, I'm bewildered. He's been at the place five minutes."

 

[admin]

What does everybody think of Greg Millers comments about Collingwood?
It seems pretty strange to me that he'd want to get into mindgames like that esp when he's new to the club.
Watching the interview I get the feeling that it's a tad personal on Miller's behalf.
I can imagine the turmoil on the board if Spud had made similar comments, but this has gone unmentioned.

 

[TigerFurious]

All members of the RFC should learn to shut the f&%k up and let there football do the talking.

 

[Tigerblood]

His first blemish. Stupid and embarassing. I'm livid. It makes us look like the moronic club that we basically are.

Just win some goddamned games!!!

 

[MC24]

Totally agree TF and Tigerblood.

Just get on with playing footy.

 

[Dean3]

I think most are missing the point. Miller's comments are directed fair and square at the Richmond group. Collingwood are just 'collateral damage' and, really, who cares about that?

 

[MC24]

Miller's comments are directed fair and square at the Richmond group.

That's all well and good Dean, but does that say something about our Club if we need that sort of motivation to win a game? It's Round 1, four points are on the line, traditional rivals, what more motivation can anyone need?

If our players aren't keen enough already then I don't see how that sort of thing is going to make one ounce of difference.

As you say, it may not be directed at the opposition. Other than taking the attention of Malthouse and Balme for a few moments, I don't see what impact it can possibly have on them.

I don't understand Greg making those comments, to be perfectly honest. He's either got some ulterior motive, or, as Rosy said, it's personal.

 

[Dean3]

No ulterior motive, just reminding the players, before the first game of the year, to focus on what they've been hammering all pre-season "gain respect."
Of course players need to be motivated. When the competition is so even, clubs are going to use any means at their disposal to squeeze even a half of a percentage extra effort. To say that players shouldn't need motivating is not the answer.
Nobody calls Sheedy or Matthews or Eddie a moron when they play some trick before a big game, so why jump on Miller? Why should Richmond be the shrinking violets?
Let's get out there and bloody mix it with them. Go Tiges!

 

[Tigerblood]

Dean, I think you're doing a good job of spin doctoring for Miller. It's an attack on Collingwood and everybody sees it that way. If he meant it to be an attack on us, then he's stuffed up in his expression. My beef is that you'd never see Collingwood, Essendon or even Carlton crying out loud that "They don't respect us! Boo hoo!" I think we ARE being shrinking violets by saying it - it's parading an inferiority complex out in public. That's why I'm embarrassed... godknows it's tough enough going for Richmond without this kind of stuff going around!

 

[Rodan#18]

I think most are missing the point. Miller's comments are directed fair and square at the Richmond group. Collingwood are just 'collateral damage' and, really, who cares about that?

agreed...it could distract collingwood though.
Storm in a teacup.

Be nice to back it up with a with a win.

 

[Dean3]

If it's firing you up so much Tigerblood, think of what it's doing to the players!

Eat'em alive boys!

 

[johnson2richo2003]

has to admit im dissapointed in what miller said.
quite frankly we have no right to start throwing stones in any direction atm.get our own backyard cleaned up 1st then start the salvos by all means.

 

[Edgar_Poe]

Miller's comments are childish. It's the first mis-step he's made. If he wants to fire up the players, do it in private. This is the kind of immature emotional comment that Frawley at times descended to last year. (eg, calling a loss one of our "best performances."). We need our coaches/off-field leaders to show the kind of determined and self-assured confidence that the likes of Matthews and Pagan display...

 

[Dean3]

Geez, we're quick to criticise aren't we? We love Miller for 6 months and he makes the mere hint of an error and we're all over him.
I'm willing to back him, I'm confident he knows what he's doing. He's been around a while you know.
Let's get behind him, the players and the club for once and start supporting them, not tearing strips off before a shot has been fired in anger.
One thing is for sure, win lose or draw tonight, you'll see a 100% committed Tiger group out there.

 

[MC24]

If it's firing you up so much Tigerblood, think of what it's doing to the players!

That's half our problem Dean. We don't need firing up. They do.

I don't see how it can have any real affect on them, but if that's what it takes, I'm all for it.

It's true what you say about player motivation Dean. Some of them, unless they have it handed to them on a plate, I doubt would ever have any or enough of their own motivation to be able to play to anywhere near their ability or potential.

 

[admin]

Geez, we're quick to criticise aren't we? We love Miller for 6 months and he makes the mere hint of an error and we're all over him.
.

You can only comment on things as they happen Dean, and this is probably the first thing Greg has done that most people don't see eye to eye with.
It's well and good to play mind games when you're successful, but is embarrassing if you mouth off with nothing to back it up.
We are coming from a pathetic year last year and an ordinary pre-season for whatever reason.
I'd rather a few runs on the board before we get too cocky.
Miller can tell the players whatever he wants to, but there's no need to use a media conference to do it imo.
I'd hope we've learned a lesson bigtime from our embarrassing use of the media last year.

 

[Dean3]

Mouth off? Did he mouth off? He said that Collingwood don't respect us. So what? If some other team said that Richmond don't respect us, I don't think I'd be as indignant as the Pies are pretending to be. If he's said the opposite, then I think we'd have a problem. Surely whether you have respect is an internal matter, and that's where Miller's comments were directed.
What I'm saying is that I can see his motivation for saying what he said. Last year, I often could see no motivation for what we were saying publicly, and that was plain silly.
I don't think it has any impact on the players to walk into the rooms after training and say "Collingwood don't respect us." He has said it publicly, to put the players on notice, publicly, that this is what the club requires.
As Rodan18 said, it's a storm in a tea cup, created by fake indignation from Collingwood. Miller would have foreseen that.

 

[admin]

“But we have got a chance tomorrow night to start setting the record straight.”

Spot on Greg, we had a chance but we blew it bigtime.
Actions speak louder than words!

 

[TigerFury]

I agree with Dean3!!! I've no issue with Miller's comments whatsoever.

As is suggested, the comments are entirely for our own benefit and are largely irrelevent to Collingwood. Whether or not it works is another matter but don't forget that Sheedy has made an art form of it at Essendon (think Marshmellow Wars and  Seagulls) and has achieved results out of it. Leigh Matthews has made similar comments which ultimately proved the spark that drove Brisbane to their last 2 premierships (If it bleeds, you can kill it!)

A little verbal argy-bargy is better than the sterile *smile* we're forcefed now!